André Patrzek
Co-Founder and CEO
Growth architect, strategy sparring at C-level.
15+ years of building growth, from subscription to DTC to Series-B scaling. Frame owner across all four layers of the Growth Engine.
The Team
Four minds, one operating logic.
Black Flag is staffed with senior operating experience from the first minute of every mandate. André Patrzek, Dr. Katharina Buttenberg and Michael Scharf carry the Growth Engine as its three pillars and lead the four layers. Maximilian Anzile leads the creative signature of the agency as Co-Founder. Behind them, more than 20 people work on the mandates.
Dr. Katharina Buttenberg
Chief Strategy Officer
Lead for the methodical base (strategy, data, AI) and the growth wrap (brand, creative).
Ex-SVP Global Brand at HelloFresh, 900 million to more than 7.5 billion EUR. Proprietary LLM brand tracking.
Michael Scharf
Chief Operating Officer
Channels, paid media, B2B lead generation, operations, attribution.
15+ years of performance marketing across 9 verticals and 11 European markets. Two exits as operational lead: Packlink and DR SMILE.
Maximilian Anzile
Co-Founder and Head of AI & Creative
AI creative and process automation.
Creative as a scalable system rather than an add-on: AI content pipelines and agentic workflows inside performance mandates. CEO of AI Pirates, 50+ AI systems built.
Roles in the system
Who leads which layer of the Growth Engine.
Four layers, three pillars. Every layer has a clear lead, and all of them work together instead of slowing each other down.
Layer 01
Methodical base
Strategy, data and AI as the foundation of every mandate. Lead: Dr. Katharina Buttenberg.
Layer 02
Performance, media and channels
Paid search, paid social, LinkedIn, ABM and Microsoft Ads as one integrated architecture. Lead: Michael Scharf.
Layer 03
Operations and execution
Tracking, attribution, CRM integration, reporting. Lead: Michael Scharf, Co-Lead: André Patrzek.
Layer 04
Growth wrap
Strategy, brand and creative as growth levers. Lead: Dr. Katharina Buttenberg, Creative Unit: Maximilian Anzile.
Get started
Meet the team behind your growth.
Tell us where your growth is stuck. We work in English and German and usually reply within one business day.